Wire clamp terminal clip of the flanged tubular type

ABSTRACT

A terminal clip for the solderless connecting of electrical conductors to terminal posts, wherein the clip comprises a tubular body section having a flanged section formed on at least one end, and wherein the connection relies on a compressive metallic deformation in the tubular section against the conductor for clamping the conductor to the post. The clamping force provided by the clip is determined in accordance with the configuration and/or the hardness of the flange edge in combination with the configuration and/or the hardness of the strain relief point, or knee, where the flange section joins the tubular section. In response to a compressive force being applied to the clip in a direction parallel to the axis of the tubular section, the material at the knee yields before that of the flange edge, thereby reducing the internal diameter of the tube at the knee for providing the clamping connection.

United States Patent Reimer July 18, 1972 [7 2] Inventor: William A.Reimer, Wheaton, Ill.

[73] Assignee: GTE Automatic Electric Laboratories,

Inc., Northlake, Ill.

[22] Filed: Aug. 26, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 66,933

[52] U5. Cl. ..l74/94 R, 29/628, 174/84 R,

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 908,815 10/1962 Great Britain ..339/273F 1,089,298 11/1967 Great Britain ..339/97 R Primary Examiner-Darrel1 L.Clay Attorney-K. Mullerheim, B. E. Franz and David W. Heid ABSIRACT Aterminal clip for the solderless connecting of electrical conductors toterminal posts, wherein the clip comprises a tubular body section havinga flanged section formed on at least one end, and wherein the connectionrelies on a compressive metallic deformation in the tubular sectionagainst the conductor for clamping the conductor to the post. Theclamping force provided by the clip is determined in accordance with theconfiguration and/or the hardness of the flange edge in combination withthe configuration and/or the hardness of the strain relief point, orknee, where the flange section joins the tubular section. In response toa compressive force being applied to the clip in a direction parallel tothe axis of the tubular section, the material at the knee yields beforethat of the flange edge, thereby reducing the internal diameter of thetube at the knee for providing the clamping connection.

5 Claim, 15 Drawing Figures Patented July 18, 1972 3,678,176

2 Sheets-Sheet -1 FIG. 4

FIG/

\ INVENTOR v Q WILLIAM A. RERMER v I ZLJMW AGENT Patented July 18, 19722 Sheets-Sheet 2 WIRE CLAMP CLIP OF THE FLANGED TUBULAR TYPE BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION 1. Field This invention relates in general to terminalclips for the solderless connecting of electrical conductors to terminalposts, and more particularly to terminal clips of the flanged tubulareyelet type, wherein the connection relies on a compressive metallicdeformation in the tubular section against the conductor for clampingthe conductor to the post.

2. Prior Art A number of prior art devices and techniques relating tovarious forms of metallic deformation have been developed and used withrespect to the solderless connection of electrical conductors toterminal posts. I

One of the more well-known solderless type of terminal connections isthat of wire wrapping such as disclosed and described in US. Pat. No.2,759,166 issued Aug. 14, 1956 to R. E. Mallina, and in US. Pat. No.2,870,241, issued Jan. 20, 1959 to W. P. Mason. ln general, theabove-noted patents describe a wire wrap connection as beingaccomplished by the winding of a portion of the temiinating end of aconductor tightly around a temrinal post. While wire wrapped electricalconnections have been generally accepted by the industry, there arecertain factors inherent to wire wrapping which affects its overalldesirability andmust therefore be considered as disadvantageous. Some ofthe more obvious and important disadvantages are, namely: (1) the wirewrapping operation must be performed by a somewhat complicated andcostly tool, which due to wear must have certain parts replaced atregular intervals; (2) to successfully wire w rap requires the use ofsolid wire conductors and of terminals having a plurality of sharpcorners; (3) the portion of wire usedfor a wrapped connection cannot bereused for subsequent wrappings; (4) as the wire wrap is ametal-to-metal connection, wherein the contact areas comprise matingdepressions in both the wire conductor and the comers of the terminalpost, a careful choice of materials for use as a coating on the wire andof the terminals is required.

Another of the well-known solderless type of .terrninal connections isthat of clipping a conductor to a terminal post such as disclosed anddescribedin US. Pat. No. 3,239,918, issued Mar. 15, 1966 to R. F.Cobaugh, and in US. Pat. No. 3,243,757, issued Mar. 29, 1966, to R. F.Cobaugh. In the clip-on type of connection described in the above-notedpatents, the terminal clip includes a web portion and sidewall portionswith means on the marginal portions thereof for engaging the post insuch a manner that the clip can be moved axially onto the post and intoI embracing relationship therewith. The post engaging means comprisescurled over marginal portions on the sidewalls so that after the clip ismoved onto the post the web is disposed against one side thereof whilethe edges of the sidewalls press against the opposite side. The wireextends onto the post and is held between the surface of the post andthe internal surface of the web after the clip comes to rest. The web ofthe clip may be substantially flat where solid wire is being connectedto the post or may be bowed transversely of the clip axis where strandedwires are used. Clip-on electrical connections have also been generallyaccepted by the industry, however there are certain factors alsoinherent thereto which are not particularly desirable and must as suchbe considered disadvantageous. Certain of the more obvious disadvantagesare, namely: (1) the clip-on operation must be performed by acomplicated and costly special tool; (2) tolerances in the dimensions ofthe clip with respect to those of the terminal post must be closelyobserved to provide satisfactory results; (3) due to the configurationof certain of the terminal posts, clips must be placed thereon in aspecific position; (4) a clip used for connecting a conductor to apostof substantially square cross-section can not be used with a post ofround or rectangular cross-section.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A primary object of the present inventionresides in the provision of an improved universal type of terminal clipfor connecting a conductor to a terminal post, wherein the clip issimple in construction, easy and economical to manufacture, notdifficult to use and provides a satisfactory and reliable electricalconnection.

In the achievement of the above-mentioned object, there is provided in apreferred embodiment of the invention, a terminal clip essentiallycomprising a tubular body section having a flanged end section. The clipis so formed that the internal diameter of the body section tapersslightly outward starting at a knee, or strain relief point, at whichthe flanged end section joins the body section. The configuration and/orhardness of the flange edge and of the knee determines the clampingforce provided by the clip. Therefore as compressive force is applied tothe clip in a direction parallel to the axis thereof and the flangesection is forced toward the tubular body section, the material at theknee will yield, or contract, inward before that of the flange edge,thereby reducing the internal diameter of the body section at the kneeto provide the clamping action of the clip.

The structural design of the terminal clip is universal in that it maybe used with stranded, solid or ribbon conductors to establishsatisfactory electrical connections with terminal posts having square,rectangular or round cross-sections.

In a practical application of the terminal clip, there is disclosed itsuse for establishing connections with terminal posts of connector blockssuch as are used in conjunction with printed wiring boards, or withvarious miniaturized electronic components. The terminal clip isparticularly desirable for use with the above type of temrinal posts,since it is of prime importance that the post not be subjected totorsional forces during the connecting operation, or to permanentcompressive deformation as a result thereof.

Briefly, the connecting of a conductor to a terminal post by means ofthe improved terminal clip is accomplished by first inserting thenon-insulated end of the conductor inside the clip from the flanged end.The clipcontaining the conductor is loaded on, or placed over, the endof the terminal post and pushed down to the desired position thereon bymeans of a simple tool such as a slotted nose pliers or a swaging tube.A compressive force is then applied to the clip in a direction parallelto the axis thereof by means of the tool to force the flange section ina direction substantially parallel with the tubular body section,whereby the material at the knee is caused to yield inward and reducethe internal diameter in area of the knee-to tightly clamp the terminalpost and thus provide the electrical connection therewith.

To provide a satisfactory connection, the clip is normally compresseduntil the plane of the outer side of the flange is substantially atright angles to the axial plane of the tubular section.

The clip may be removed by applying additional compressive forcethereto, wherein the flange is forced inward toward the body section andbeyond the above-described right angle. As such, the clamping force isallowed to relax and the internal diameter in the area of the knee tendsto restore to its original size due to the inherent elastic propertiesof the clip.

Another embodiment of the invention discloses a terminal clip comprisinga tubular body section having a flanged portion at each end, with notaper to its internal diameter. When the clip is compressed, the bodysection at the strain relief area of each knee yields inward asdescribed above to clamp the bare wire to the terminal at one knee andthe insulated wire to the terminal at the other.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The nature of the invention and itsdistinguishing features and advantages, which reside in theconstruction, and the arrangement and combination of its parts, will bemore clearly understood from the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the terminal clip, according to oneembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the clip taken along the lines 22 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an isometric view, according to another embodiment of thetemiinal clip;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the clip taken along the lines 44 ofFIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view showing the clip held by the jaw portion ofa pliers type compressing tool;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the clip and conductor mountedon a terminal post, with the clip being held by the tool of FIG. 5, butnot compressed;

FIG. 6a is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 6 showing the clippartially compressed;

FIG. 6b is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 6a showing the clipcompressed to its clamping deformation;

FIG. 6c is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 6b showing the clipsof FIG. 6b further compressed to relax the clamping force;

FIGS. 7 and 7a are respective normal and compressed views of the clip ofFIG. 1 as used with a terminal post of a square cross-section;

FIGS. 8 and 8a are respective normal and compressed bottom views of theclip of FIG. 1 as used with a terminal post of a round cross-section;and

FIGS. 9 and 9a are respective normal and compressed bottom views of theclip of FIG. 1 as used with a special terminal post of substantiallyround cross-section.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Structure Referring to the drawings, and inparticular to FIGS. 1 and 2, which show a preferred embodiment of theterminal clip 1 as essentially comprising a tubular body section 10having a flanged end section 11. It will be noted that the thickness ofthe sidewalls of terminal clip 1 at the strain relief knee point 12 isless than that of the rest of the body section 10, or of the outer edgeof flange 11. The purpose of this reduction in thickness will beexplained more in detail later on' in the specification under theheading entitled Operation. The internal diameter of the body section 10slightly tapers outward from knee point 12 to its lower non-flanged end,with this taper being represented in FIG. 2 by extended radial lines andidentified by the reference numeral 13.

Referring now to the right-hand side of FIG 5, it will be seen that theterminal clip 1 is shown as clamping conductor 16 to a round terminalpost 15, which is attached to a terminal board. The remainder of FIG. 5shows another temiinal clip 1 being held in the jaws of a simplecompressing or deforming, tool prior to being slid down into a desiredposition on post and the subsequent clamping of conductor 17 thereto.

Although the invention does not relate to the tool for compressing theclip, it is believed that the function of the clip will be betterunderstood if the tool is briefly described. As shown in FIG. 5, jaws 23and 24 represent the modified jaws of a small long-nosed pliers, whereinthe extreme tip ends of the jaws have been removed. Jaws 23 and 24haverespective slots 25 and 26 cut therein forming tines 28 and 29 injaw 23, and tines 30 and 31 in jaw 24. The width of slots 25 and 26 issuch that a terminal post will easily fit therein. A rectangular shapedstop 27 is shown as being welded to the inner surface of jaw 24 forlimiting the closure of the jaws. Any other means such as an adjustableset screw could be substituted for the stop 27, however. A portion oftine 28 has been removed in order to more clearly show how the temiinalclip 1 is held by the compressing tool.

With reference to FIGS. 6 through 6b, respectively, it will be seen thatthese drawings are basically cross-sectional top end views showing theterminal clip I held between the tines of the jaws of the compressingtool, with FIG. 6 showing the clip in its normal nondeformed state, FIG.6a showing the clip as partially deformed and FIG. 6b showing the clipas being deformed sufiiciently to clamp conductor 17 to post 15.

FIG. 6c is somewhat similar to FIG. 6b, but shows the use of a slightlymodified form of the compressing tool for further compressing the clip 1in order to release its clamping action and thus remove the clip andconductor 17 from post 15. The compressing tool as show in FIG. 6c ismodified to the extent that the thickness of stop 37 is slightly lessthan that of stop 27, and the flange-engaging surfaces of tines 40 and41 are rounded as shown at points 44 and 45, respectively. As modified,the jaws of the tool are allowed to close a slightly greater amount thanthe regular compressing tool, whereby flange section 1 l is additionallycompressed in order to release the clamping action of clip 1.

The clip 1 may be used to clamp a conductor to square, round and specialsubstantially round terminal posts such as are shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and9, respectively, with the clamping action of each being represented as areduction of the internal diameter substantially at knee point 12 andshown in FIGS. 7a, 8a and 9a. It will be noted that while solid wireconductors have been shown as being used in all of these figures,stranded wire conductors may be used with equal success. The specialround terminal post 35 shown in FIGS. 9 and 911 includes a longitudinalgroove 36 for accommodating solid wire conductors such as 19. However,if stranded wire conductors are used with this type of post, they arelocated on the post at any of the rounded areas such as 18.

The terminal clip 2 of the other embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4discloses a tubular body section 20 having a flange section 21 at eachend. In this clip it will be noted that the thickness of the sidewallsof body section 20 remains constant, but is less than that of flanges21, wherein the thickness of their side walls substantially increasesfrom the strain relief knee points 22 to the outer edges. The internaldiameter of body section 20 is not tapered such as that of body section10 for the reason that the use of double flanges would make thedirection of the taper hard to detect at the time of loading the clip 2on a post.

OPERATION An operational description using the terminal clip 1 such asdisclosed in FIG. 1 for connecting conductor 17 to terminal post 15 willnow be given. It will be assumed that the terminal clip compressing toolsuch as the pliers 3 shown in the lefthand portion of FIG. 5 will beused for deforming the clip to establish the clamping connection.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the bare wire end of conductor 17 is insertedinto clip 1 by way of its flange end, with the clip being held betweenthe tines of jaws 23 and 24 of pliers 3. Clip 1 containing conductor 17is placed over the end of terminal post 15 (flange end first) and pushedin the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 5 to the position onterminal post 15 to the immediate left of the terminal clip 1 thereonshown as clamping conductor 16 thereto. It will be appreciated that withclip 1 being placed onto the end of post 15 as described above, flange11 serves as an inverted funnel guiding means for aligning post 15 withthe center of the clip. Further, due to conductor 17 being inserted intoclip 1 from the flange end, friction resulting from the sliding movementof the clip on post 15 does not cause conductor 17 to disengagetherefrom, and instead results in a cleaning action on the post.

With clip 1 and conductor 17 being in the proper position on post 15,the next operation is to deform, or compress, clip 1 for clampingconductor 17 to post 15. Jaws 23 and 24 of pliers 3 are thereforemanually closed, or moved, towards one another as indicated by thearrows in FIG. 6a for initiating the compression force on clip 1,wherein it will be seen that the outer edge of flange portion 11 ismoved in a direction substantially parallel with body section 10.Simultaneous with the above movement of flange 11, the area of bodysection 10 en circled by knee 12 is caused to start contracting inwardtoward terminal post 15 and the portion of body section encircled by thearea 32 is caused to start bulging outward away from post 15. It will benoted that body section 10 deforrrs as described above due to theselection of material of which the clip is made and the particularvariance in thickness of its side walls. As can be seen in FIG. 2, thewall thickness of body section 10 continuously increases from knee point12 to the free end of body section 10, and similarly the wall thicknessof flange l1 continuously increases from knee point 12 to the free endof flange l 1.

The completion of the clamping connection is shown in FIG. 6b, whereinjaws 23 and 24 of pliers 3 are closed until jaw 23 meets stop 27 toprevent further closing of the jaws. At this time it will be seen thatthe area of body section 10 encircled by knee 12 has contracted againstterminal post for tightly clamping the wire of conductor 17 thereto.Additionally, the bulge in the portion of body section 10 encircled byarea 32 has increased as shown. The wire of conductor 17 is now clampedagainst terminal post 15 for establishing a satisfactory electricalconnection thereto.

In the above-described clamping operation, no useful purpose was servedby the taper 13, even though clip 1 was so provided. Due to differentintended uses of the terminal clip, it was therefor designed to includethe taper, which in addition to the above-described normal usage allowsuse of the clip for experimental or prototype work, wherein it isnecessary to establish only temporary connections. In this special usageof the clip, the temporary connections are provided by means of thetaper and compression of the clip is not required, thereby allowing easyremoval and reuse of the clip.

A temporary connection is established by inserting a conductor such as17 into the flange end of clip 1 including the taper 13. This assemblyis then placed on a terminal post such as 15 and slid down into thelocation such as shown in FIG. 6. Due to the reduced diameter of thebody section 10 of clip 1 at knee point 12, the wire of conductor 17frictionally engages post 15 for establishing the temporary connectiontherewith. The connection may be disconnected merely by sliding clip 1and conductor 17 off the post 15.

The clamping connection provided by the compressed clip 1 shown in FIG.611 may be removed as hereafter described, reference being had inparticular with FIG. 60, wherein a slightly modified clip compressingtool is used to further compress flange ll of clip 1 for releasing theclamping force provided thereby. The compressing tool is modified byreducing the thickness of stop 37 a slight amount (as compared with stop27) to enable the jaws of the tool to close slightly more than those ofthe pliers 3, and by rounding the internal flange engaging surfaces 44and 45 of tines 40 and 41, respectively, to enable the additionalcompressing force to be concentrated toward the outer edge of flange 11.When the clamping force of clip 1 as shown in FIG. 6b is to be removed,the clip is gripped by the modified tool and further compressed as shownin FIG. 6c, wherein the outer edge of flange 11 is moved a furtheramount in the same direction as previously described. This addedmovement of flange 11 unlocks the stress exerted by it on body section10 so that the previously described contraction of body section 10 atknee l2 and the outward bulging thereof at area 32 is affected by theelastic properties inherent to the material of clip 1 for allowing thebody section 10 to relax and partially return to its original shape. Theclamping action of clip 1 is thus rendered ineffective and both the clipand conductor 17 may be slid from terminal post 15.

The above description covered the establishing of a clamping connection,wherein the conductor wire end is inserted into the terminal clip fromthe flange end and the clip thereafter being loaded flange-end-down ontoa temiinal post. It will be appreciated that an equally satisfactoryclamping connection may be established by inserting the conductor wireend into the non-flanged end of terminal clip 1 so that it extendsslightly therein beyond the flanged end, and thereafter loading the cliponto a terminal post non-flanged-end-down. The clip I is thereaftercompressed in the same manner to establish the clamping connection.

Use of the temtinal clip 2 of the other embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and4, to establish a clamping connection, will now be described. Althoughnot shown, the wire of the conductor may be inserted into clip 2 fromeither flange end, with the insulated part of the conductor just barelyentering body section 20 of clip 2 at one of the knee points 22, and thewire portion of the conductor just barely exiting the body section 20 atthe opposite knee point. The clip 2 and its conductor are held betweenthe tines of the jaws of a similar type compressing pliers, with theclip being loaded onto a connector post conductonend-down and thereafterslid into position and compressed by the tool to complete the clampingconnection. In a clamping connection using clip 2, it will beappreciated that the reduced internal diameter formed at the one knee 22clamps the insulated conductor to the terminal post, while the reducedinternal diameter at the opposite knee clamps the wire thereto toestablish the electrical connection.

While the tool used for compressing clip 2 is substantially the same aspliers 3, the structure of clip 2 is such as to require the jaws of thetool to close further than when compressing the clip 1. Therefore, thethickness of the stop such as 27 must be reduced, in accordance with thepredetermined compressed length of clip 2, to provide satisfactoryclamping. The tool for removing clip 2 from a clamping connection issimilar to the tool used for clip 1, with the exception that thethickness of the stop such as 27 must be further reduced.

FIGS. 1 and 2 disclose slots such as 14 formed within the sides of bothclip 1 and flange 11 in the area of knee point 12 for allowing greaterdeformation thereat, if additional clamping force is desired.

From the foregoing, it is therefore quite evident that a terminal clipis provided that is universally adapted for use with stranded, solid orribbon type of conductors to establish satisfactory electricalconnections to terminal posts of square, rectangular or roundcross-sections. As the terminal clip comprises a tubular body sectionhaving a flange section on at least one end, and relies on a reductionof its internal diameter, in the knee area joining the flange and bodysections, as a result of a compressive force being applied thereto, theclip may be made from a wide selection of materials. Various productiontechniques may be employed to make the terminal clip, such as the use ofa modified eyelet forming machine; coining, forming, and blanking on apunch press; or the forming thereof on a screw machine.

Having described my invention, what is considered new and is desired tohave protected by Letters Patent will be pointed out in the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:

1. An electrical joint comprising:

a temrinal post;

a conductor extending adjacent and substantially parallel to the axis ofsaid temtinal post; and

a generally sleeve-shaped clip surrounding said terminal post andconductor, said clip having a tubular body section with a flange formedat one end of said section and an encircling knee in said body sectionat the junction of said flange with said one end; said body section andsaid flange including a plurality of slots spaced around the internalsurface thereof at said knee, said flange having a depressed orientationin which it extends substantially perpendicular to the axis of saidterminal post, and said conductor being tightly and lastingly clamped tosaid post by an inward projection of said junction portion only of saidclip, said depressed orientation and said inward projection resultingfrom prior momentary application of an axial compressive force to theouter peripheral portion of said flange.

2. A generally sleeve-shaped clip for connecting a conductor to aterminal post of an external dimension slightly smaller than theinternal dimension of said clip, said clip comprising:

a generally tubular body section;

a flange formed with an outward flare of less than at one end of saidsection; and

a junction portion between said flange and said one end of said bodysection, the wall thickness of said flange and of said body sectionbecoming continuously greater than that of said junction portion fromsaid junction portion to the free end of said flange and to the otherend of said body section respectively, so that said junction portion ismore easily deformable than body section and said flange and that whensaid clip is positioned over said terminal 5. A generally sleeve-shapedclip for connecting a conduclO tor to a temiinal post of an externaldimension slightly smaller than the internal dimension of said clip,said clip comprising:

a generally tubular body section; a flange formed with an outward flareof less than 90 on each end of said body section; and a junction portionbetween each of said flanges and the respective end of said bodysection, the wall thickness of each said flange continuously increasingfrom the respecpost and said conductor and an axial compressive force ismomentarily applied between said other end of said body section and saidfree end of said flange, said junction portion contracts, forcing saidconductor against said terminal post and establishing an electricalconnection therebetween. 3. The clip of claim 2 wherein said bodysection is gradually flared from said junction portion to said other endof said body section.

4 A l i l j i i i tive junction portion to the free end of said flange,so that a t inal post; said junction portions are more easily deformablethan said body section and said flanges and that when said clip ispositioned over said terminal post and said conductor and an axialcompressive force is momentarily applied to said free ends of saidflanges, said junction portions contract, forcing said conductor againstsaid terminal post, and establishing an electrical connectiontherebetween.

a conductor extending adjacent and substantially parallel to 20 the axisof said terminal post; and

a generally sleeve shaped clip surrounding said terminal post andconductor, said clip having a generally tubular body section, a flangeformed at one end of said section and a relatively weak junction portionbetween said flange and said end of said body section, said flange hav-UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No- 3 678176 I Dated July J 1972 Invent0 WILLIAM A. REIMER It is certified thaterror appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown'below:

Column 7, lines 3-4, delete "becoming continuously greater than that ofsaid junction portion" and add continuously increasing in thicknessSigned and sealed this 13th day of March 1975.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,IJR.

ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents FORMPC3-1050 (10-69) uscoMM-Dc 60376-P69 U,S, GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE:1969 0-366-334 UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTIONPatent No- 3 678 176 Dated July 18 19.72

Invent WILLIAM A. REIMER It is certified that error appears in theabove-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are herebycorrected as shown below:

Column 7 lines 3-4 delete "becoming continuously greater than that ofsaid junction portion" and add continuously increasing in thicknessSigned and sealed this 13th day of March 1973.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR.

ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents F ORMPO-1050 (10-69) USCOMM DC fiO376-P59 US. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1I959 O366-J34

1. An electrical joint comprising: a terminal post; a conductorextending adjacent and substantially parallel to the axis of saidterminal post; and a generally sleeve-shaped clip surrounding saidterminal post and conductor, said clip having a tubular body sectionwith a flange formed at one end of said section and an encircling kneein said body section at the junction of said flange with said one end;said body section and said flange including a plurality of slots spacedaround the internal surface thereof at said knee, said flange having adepressed orientation in which it extends substantially perpendicular tothe axis of said terminal post, and said conductor being tightly andlastingly clamped to said post by an inward projection of said junctionportion only of said clip, said depressed orientation and said inwardprojection resulting from prior momentary application of an axialcompressive force to the outer peripheral portion of said flange.
 2. Agenerally sleeve-shaped clip for connecting a conductor to a terminalpost of an external dimension slightly smaller than the internaldimension of said clip, said clip comprising: a generally tubular bodysection; a flange formed with an outward flare of less than 90* at oneend of said section; and a junction portion between said flange and saidone end of said body section, the wall thickness of said flange and ofsaid body section becoming continuously greater than that of saidjunction portion from said junction portion to the free end of saidflange and to the other end of said body section respectively, so thatsaid junction portion is more easily deformable than body section andsaid flange and that when said clip is positioned over said terminalpost and said conductor and an axial compressive force is momentarilyapplied between said other end of said body section and said free end ofsaid flange, said junction portion contracts, forcing said conductoragainst said terminal post and establishing an electrical connectiontherebetween.
 3. The clip of claim 2 wherein said body section isgradually flared from said junction portion to said other end of saidbody section.
 4. An electrical joint comprising: a terminal post; aconductor extending adjacent and substantially parallel to the axis ofsaid terminal post; and a generally sleeve shaped clip surrounding saidterminal post and conductor, said clip having a generally tubular bodysection, a flange formed at one end of said section and a relativelyweak junction portion between said flange and said end of said bodysection, said flange having a depressed orientation in which it extendssubstantially perpendicular to the axis of said terminal post, and saidconductor being tightly anD lastingly clamped to said post by an inwardprojection of said junction portion only of said clip, said depressedorientation and said inward projection resulting from prior momentaryapplication of an axial compressive force to the outer peripheralportion of said flange.
 5. A generally sleeve-shaped clip for connectinga conductor to a terminal post of an external dimension slightly smallerthan the internal dimension of said clip, said clip comprising: agenerally tubular body section; a flange formed with an outward flare ofless than 90* on each end of said body section; and a junction portionbetween each of said flanges and the respective end of said bodysection, the wall thickness of each said flange continuously increasingfrom the respective junction portion to the free end of said flange, sothat said junction portions are more easily deformable than said bodysection and said flanges and that when said clip is positioned over saidterminal post and said conductor and an axial compressive force ismomentarily applied to said free ends of said flanges, said junctionportions contract, forcing said conductor against said terminal post,and establishing an electrical connection therebetween.